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MONDAY, April 29, 2013 — Supplements such as omega-3 capsules reduced heart disease risk when "prescribed" along with diet and lifestyle advice, according to a study published today. But it remains unclear how much and for whom the supplements help.

Researchers from Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine in Toronto and the Ottawa Integrative Cancer Centre looked at 207 people, half of whom only received traditional care, such as cholesterol and blood pressure medications; half of whom received diet and lifestyle advice and naturopathic care as well, which included natural health products such as omega-3 fatty acids and coenzyme Q10.

After one year, the researchers found that those who received naturopathic treatment were at a 17 percent decreased risk of cardiovascular disease, based on their Framingham score — a scale that uses age, gender, cholesterol levels and blood pressure to determine the level of risk for cardiovascular disease.

“We found a significant reduction in the risk of cardiovascular disease following counseling about nutritional and physical activity provided by naturopathic doctors,” Dugald Seely, M.Sc., study author and director of research at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, wrote in the Canadian Medical Association Journal study. "This implies that 1 of 6 individuals receiving additional naturopathic care benefit, in comparison to those who do not.”

Naturopathic medicine helped reduce incidence of metabolic syndrome, researchers said, a combination of medical disorders including high blood pressure, high cholesterol and elevated waist circumference. Metabolic syndrome increases the risk for cardiovascular disease, obesity and diabetes, said Steven Zodkoy, DC, a nutrition specialist with the American Clinical Board of Nutritionists, who added that this type of naturopathic treatment could help reduce the risk for those diseases as well.

“This study was on heart disease but it just as well could have been on obesity or diabetes,” he said. “What it really shows is that exercise, diet, lifestyle changes and supplements are what we need to key in on ways to prevent death.”

“The good thing about these supplements is that they’re extremely safe, so if someone wanted to do it as a preventative measure, they could go out and take omega-3 oils, or extra fiber,” he said. “Supplements are a great way to boost health and reduce the risk of heart disease.”

But not everyone is enamored with the results. Jeffrey Borer, MD, chief of cardiovascular medicine at SUNY Downstate Medical Center, said that while the findings are promising, it’s too early to draw any conclusions.

“The findings support the hypothesis that this type of care can reduce cardiovascular disease risk, but it doesn’t prove it,” he said. “There is still some controversy over whether these supplements have any actual effect.”

The main problem, Dr. Borer said, is that the findings looked at the risk factors for cardiovascular disease based on their Framingham score without actually looking into who developed the condition, something that severely impedes the results.

“In order to demonstrate that this therapy actually has benefits, you would need to do a formal clinical trial with hard outcomes,” he said.” It sounds beneficial, and it very well may be, but we can tell if we don’t have true, hard results.”

Dr. Borer added that he’s not doubting the results, but said he simply would like to see more information before drawing any conclusions.

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